The Antique Shop
by kaerfemina
Summary: Kagome is out on a shopping trip with her grandfather when she meets someone very unexpected. How does she react to the past catching up to the present?
1. The Shopping Trip

A/N: Here's a new idea I came up with. I hope you all like it. Enjoy.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Inuyasha.

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><p>"Jii-chan, what are we doing here?" Kagome asked as she walked along beside her grandfather.<p>

"It's been a while since you've been home last, I thought it would be nice to spend some time together. I hardly see you anymore, Kagome. Even when you _are_ at home."

"Okay, that's all well and good, but what are we doing _here_?" she indicated the storefronts lining both sides of the street.

Her grandfather turned a surprised look at her. "I thought we'd do something you would enjoy. You do _like_ shopping, don't you?"

"Well, yes. But this isn't exactly the mall, Jii-chan," she replied as they passed a "new age" health shop filled with crystals and such. She grimaced at the strong odor of incense wafting out of the door. "This isn't where I usually go to shop."

"Nonsense! These kinds of stores are the best places to shop! You can find things here that you can't buy anywhere else. For example," he pointed at a toyshop across the street. "That place is a very rare shop nowadays. The owner makes all the toys _by hand_ so nothing in there is the same. His toys are unique. Not like the mass-produced stuff your brother has at home." He took Kagome by the hand and pulled her across the street as he said, "We should get something for him."

Forty minutes later, they emerged from the toyshop with a wooden popgun and slingshot. They were the only two things in the whole store Kagome thought Souta would like. Her grandfather was so pushy! But she might as well enjoy herself. At least he was willing to buy her stuff; that was always a perk. "Okay, Jii-chan, where to next?" She asked brightly.

He grinned at her. "That's the spirit!" he glanced up and down the road. "I'm not sure, why don't we keep walking and we'll figure it out as we go?"

"Okay,"

So they began to walk down the street some more. They entered a few indie clothing stores and a really interesting handmade jewelry store. She ended up walking away with an intricately carved pendant made from Hawaiian 'ohi'a lehua wood and a couple funky new indie tee shirts.

"Thanks so much, Jii-chan!" she exclaimed as she ran her fingers over the beautiful wooden pendant again. "This is so pretty."

"I'm glad you like it. That wood is usually pretty expensive. We're lucky we got it at the price we did."

"You didn't have to buy this for me."

"I wanted to. And since you had Buyo eat my last birthday gift to you, I thought I ought to get you something nice."

Kagome winced at the reminder. "Sorry about that,"

He waved it off. "Its fine. You just don't understand the purpose and meaning behind my gifts so you don't appreciate them. I understand that now." He patted her arm in an attempt to placate her.

Kagome just nodded.

Suddenly, her grandfather cried out happily. "Look, Kagome, an antique shop! Let's go in there!" he cried as he hurried towards it.

Kagome laughed. He looked like a little kid who just found a candy shop full of free candy. He sure did like his antiques. She rushed to catch up.

The bell above the door jangled as they entered the store. "Welcome," called the storeowner from behind the cash register. The voice was eerily familiar. Kagome turned to look at him and couldn't believe her eyes.

The man sat on a simple stool behind the counter, his eyes on the book in his hand. His long silver hair was pulled back into a ponytail at the nape of his neck. The blue crescent moon on his brow and twin maroon stripes on both cheeks stood out on his pale face.

"Sesshoumaru?"

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><p>AN: Okay, what'd you think? Hopefully I'll have the next chapter up soon. I'm partially finished with it already. Ja-ne!


	2. First Words Spoken

A/N: Here's the next chapter! I sure hope you enjoy it!

DISCLAIMER: I still do not own Inuyasha. If I did, Why would I be writing _fanfiction_?

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><p>Golden eyes slid from the book he was reading and zeroed in on her face. She saw recognition flicker behind his eyes, which was then followed by extreme confusion. "Miko?" his voice held a slight tone of disbelief, as if he couldn't believe he was really seeing her.<p>

When he spoke, Kagome snapped out of her shock. "What are you doing here, Sesshoumaru?"

"I could ask you the same question." He stated flatly.

"I happen to _live_ here."

"As do I."

Kagome's eyes narrowed. "How is that possible?"

The inuyoukai rose to his full height, glided around the counter and stood in front of her in his typical intimidating manner. And as usual, she stood her ground and stared at him, unintimidated. They glared at one another for a moment before he leaned down in her face and whispered, "I have not seen you in nearly five centuries, onna."

As the meaning of his words sunk into her brain, her eyes widened. She understood now. At first she had thought he had somehow come through the well but now she knew better. He had lived through the five hundred years separating the feudal era from her era. Now that he mentioned it, she could see a few subtle differences in his face that she wouldn't have noticed if she wasn't looking for them. He _looked_ older, though definitely not by much. In the feudal era he looked like a young man of eighteen or nineteen years. Right now, he looked between twenty-one and twenty-five. But the most significant change had to be his eyes. Even though his face still showed no signs of emotion, his eyes were very expressive. They used to be so cold, but now every emotion he was feeling was on display in their golden depths.

When she didn't respond, he asked, "How are you here?"

"I told you. I _live_ here."

"That is not possible. I knew you five hundred years ago. Humans do not live that long."

"Yes, you're right. We don't live that long."

Irritation showed clearly in his now expressive eyes. He gave a little huff before repeating, "Then how are you here?"

Before she could answer, her grandfather walked over to them, his arms filled with antique books. "Do you know this young man, Kagome?"

"Um…" She didn't know what to say. If she told him she did know him, he would want to know from where. And if he knew that, he would respond to him in a similar fashion as the first time he met Inuyasha. And she knew Sesshoumaru well enough to know he wouldn't tolerate being treated that way. She didn't even want to think of how he would react to having salt thrown at him.

But the taiyoukai answered for her. "Yes, we knew each other long ago. I have not seen her in many years. Would you like to purchase those items?" He smoothly steered the subject onto a safer path.

"Yes! You have a most exquisite collection. I have never been able to find such fine antiques before."

The two of them returned to the counter and Sesshoumaru rung up the purchase on the register. Five minutes later, Jii-chan was ready to leave the store.

"You go ahead, Jii-chan. I want to say goodbye to my 'old friend.' Don't worry, I'll catch up in a minute."

"Alright, but don't take too long. Dinner's in an hour. We should be getting home."

Kagome nodded and watched him leave before turning back to Sesshoumaru. "Okay, so where were we?"

Sesshoumaru came back around the counter to stand over her again. "We have much to discuss."

"Yes."

"Our talk will take longer than a minute."

"I would think so."

"Then you will return tomorrow. We shall finish our discussion then."

"O-okay. What time should I come?"

"I open at 7am. You are free to come anytime after that."

She smiled up at him. "Okay! See you tomorrow then!" With that, she left the shop.

When she caught up to her grandfather, the old man studied her happy expression. "He is too old for you, Kagome."

Kagome turned a startled look at him. "W-what?"

"That man," he pointed back at the antique shop. "He's too old for you."

She laughed. "You have no idea, Jii-chan. No idea at all."

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><p>AN: So, what'd you think? You like? Let me know in a review please!


	3. The Talk

A/N: And here's the third chapter! I hope you enjoy!

DISCLAIMER: Inuyasha is not mine.

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><p>The next morning, Kagome woke at the crack of dawn and flew through her morning routine in record time. She fussed with her hair and changed outfits three times before she realized that she was going to see <em>Sesshoumaru<em>. He wouldn't care about her appearance so it didn't matter what she wore or how cute her hair looked. Not knowing why she even cared how she looked, she sighed, gave up and went downstairs.

Her mother was in the kitchen preparing the morning tea. She looked up in surprise when her daughter walked in. "Oh! You're up early, Kagome. What's the occasion?"

Kagome sat down at the table before answering. "I met an old friend while shopping with Jii-chan yesterday. We're getting together to catch up."

"That's nice." She smiled warmly. "Would you like some tea?"

"Yes please."

Mrs. Higurashi came over and poured her a cup. "What would you like for breakfast?"

Kagome glanced at the clock. She didn't have much time until seven. "Something quick, Mama. It would be better if I could take it with me. I don't have a lot of time."

"Oh. All right then." She opened the fridge and pulled out a plate of rice balls. "Take a couple of these. I was saving them for lunch but I can make more."

"Thank you, Mama!" She quickly finished her tea and took the rice balls and ran out of the room. As she rounded into the hall she nearly collided with her grandfather. "Oh, sorry, Jii-chan! Bye!" With that, she slipped on her shoes and disappeared out the front door.

Mrs. Higurashi chuckled under her breath. Her daughter's uplifted expression, cute outfit and rush to leave could only mean one thing. This "friend" she was meeting up with was a _boy_.

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><p>Halting across the street from Sesshoumaru's shop, Kagome checked her watch. It read 7:02 am. She wondered if he would care that she was two minutes late. Shrugging, she crossed the street and entered the store.<p>

It was empty. There was no one in sight. He did say seven, right? "Hello?" she called. The empty shop was starting to creep her out. Then she heard a sound come from the partially opened door behind the register. "Sesshoumaru?" She walked toward the door but before she could get around the counter, the taiyoukai exited carrying a large box.

It was so strange seeing the Lord of the West wearing normal, modern clothes. He had on a white button down collared shirt with the top button undone and the sleeves rolled up to his elbows with a pair of plain khaki pants. The abundance of fur that used to adorn his right shoulder was missing as well. She kind of missed his old look. It worked for his personality.

Putting the box down on the counter, he looked up at her and scrutinized her with his unusually expressive eyes. "I was not expecting you so early. You are punctual."

She stared at him in astonishment. Did Sesshoumaru just give her a _compliment_? She shook herself out of the shock and responded with, "You said seven so I got here at seven." Her voice came out a little sharper than she intended.

"Hn," was all he replied. His eyes danced with humor as he opened the box and lifted a beautiful vase out of it. He inspected the intricate details of the vase before a short, angry growl escaped his chest and he tossed the vase over his shoulder into another box filled with broken antiques. It shattered on impact.

"What are you doing? That vase was gorgeous!"

He shot her a flat look. "It was a knock-off. This Sesshoumaru only accepts the best."

"I can see that."

"Hn." He pulled an old jewelry box out of the box and eyed it critically. After a moment, he nodded and placed it on the counter.

Kagome was shocked. The little box looked in really bad shape. "You're keeping _that_ but not that beautiful vase?"

He growled. "I told you, the vase was a fake. This box is genuine. I will restore it before I sell it."

She shrugged. It was _his_ business. He could run it however he wanted. Growing bored of his inspection of the content of the box, she wandered around the store looking at all the merchandise. Normally, these kinds of things weren't interesting to her but she was fascinated when she came across a bunch of items that exuded youki. She found a small statue imbued with kitsune magic, a beaded necklace that she was sure was made from demon bone, and a rocking chair that rocked on its own as it reacted to her miko aura. It became a game, to find what among the normal human antiques were from youkai origins.

After about ten minutes, when she was combing the store for more youki, suddenly Sesshoumaru was standing before her.

"We will have our talk now."

"Oh, okay."

"Come."

He led her up some stairs beside the counter to a little loft area where he could still oversee the store but they would have privacy if anyone were to come in.

"Sit." He commanded gesturing to the two plush armchairs before them. Kagome obediently sat in one while Sesshoumaru sat in the other. "Now, explain."

She looked at him bewildered. "Explain what?"

He gave an irritated huff. "How are you here, Miko?"

"Oh, that. Its kind of difficult to explain…"

He just stared at her, waiting.

"Okay, I'm from here. I was born almost sixteen years ago, here in Tokyo."

"Not possible. I knew you five centuries ago. Do not lie to me."

"Its not a lie. I'm only fifteen. On my fifteenth birthday last year, I fell into a well and when I climbed back out, I was five hundred years in the past."

Sesshoumaru's eyebrow lifted incredulously. "You traveled through time?"

"I know it sounds crazy but it's the truth."

He discreetly took in her scent. It was pure. The taint of a lie was absent. His nose was never wrong. Her words may have been difficult to accept but she was telling the truth. "Hn," he replied with a nod.

Kagome smiled at him. "Does that mean you believe me?"

"I do not smell a lie."

"Because it's the truth."

"I believe you." Just then, the bell over the door announced the entrance of a customer. "Pardon me." And Sesshoumaru went to deal with the shopper.

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><p>AN: So that's it for this chapter. You liked it, yes?


	4. Delivery Boy

A/N: Please enjoy this chapter.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Inuyasha. However, Fluffy-kun owns _me_. I'm sure any Sesshoumaru fan would say that though :)

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><p>The woman who had entered the shop was admiring a beautiful trunk when Sesshoumaru approached her. She asked a few questions about it before saying it was a perfect wedding gift for her daughter.<p>

It was bizarre watching the stoic youkai interact with the woman. Kagome just wasn't used to him being civil with humans. However, she did notice that his eyes froze over and he became the distant, cold and emotionless person she remembered. She wondered over the change.

The two went to the counter and the woman bought the trunk.

"Do you deliver? I can't carry it home. It's too heavy for me."

"Yes. I deliver." He pulled a clipboard from beneath the counter. "Fill out this form."

After a minute, she returned the completed form, thanked him and left. Sesshoumaru picked up the phone. There was a short pause and he said, "I am in need of your services. I have a delivery." Pause. "Hn, do not dawdle." He hung up and returned to the loft.

When his gaze met Kagome's, she watched as his hard eyes melted into liquid gold again. His stare was intense as he sat again beside her. "Tell me more."

"What do you want to know?"

Without hesitating, he asked, "How does it work?"

"The time travel?" Sesshoumaru responded with one stiff nod. Kagome shrugged. "Who knows? All I know is that it _does_. In the beginning, I needed a jewel shard to make the jump but as time went on and I understood my abilities better, it wasn't necessary anymore. Inuyasha was always able to pass through though and I don't know why."

As she spoke the last sentence, a strange emotion shimmered in his eyes and she didn't know what it was. What had she said to upset him _this_ time? "Inuyasha has come here?"

"Er, yeah?" She didn't know what was up with him. His question had been asked in a soft voice just like every other time he spoke today but the _tone_ in which he spoke was off. The regal confidence in which he spoke was stripped away leaving the words open, raw and vulnerable. She was so confused. "Why?"

Sesshoumaru suddenly stood. "It is nothing." With that, he swept back downstairs in a whirl of agitated youki.

Kagome felt like laughing because, for a reason she couldn't quite put her finger on, Sesshoumaru seemed embarrassed. And for him to be flustered so was hilarious. She snorted a bit but managed to keep the giggles from escaping. Once she was composed she went to follow him. She was starting down the stairs when the shop bell jangled as someone entered.

"Oi, Sesshoumaru! What's the big idea calling me in so early on the weekend! Come on, its Sunday! And it's not even ten yet!"

"Shut up and deliver the trunk." Sesshoumaru responded, irritated. "I am busy."

Kagome reached the bottom of the stairs in time to see him hand the woman's completed delivery form to a boy of about thirteen. A strange nagging feeling settled in her chest as soon as she saw the youth. He looked too ordinary, too plain. Then it hit her. He was under a kitsune concealment spell so that he looked human. Once she realized this, her innate spiritual abilities allowed her to see through it. She blinked and before her stood a boy with fiery red hair, green eyes and three fluffy tails swaying behind him.

At her surprised gasp, green eyes focused on her and he nearly fell over in shock. "K-kagome?"

"SHIPPO!" Kagome squealed in delight and launched herself across the room and gathered the startled fox into her arms.

When he had recovered from his surprise, his eyes flooded with tears and he clung to her blubbering. He murmured her name over and over like a mantra.

Sesshoumaru watched the spectacle for a moment until the emotional display became too much. "Shippo." His voice laced with disapproval.

The kitsune jumped at the displeased voice and remembered that he wasn't a little boy anymore. He was over five hundred years old now. He almost had his forth tail for kami's sake. Weeping was really uncalled for. So he pulled away from her, forced down the tears and gathered up some dignity. "I can't believe it! I'm so happy to see you!"

"Me too! Look at you, how grown up you are! And _three_ tails! I'm so proud of you!"

Shippo's eyes turned to focus on the ground. "Stop it, Kagome. You're embarrassing me."

She smiled brightly at him and grabbed his hand. "Come on, you have to tell me everything!" She began to tow him back towards the stairs to the loft but a certain taiyoukai stopped her.

"Delivery first. You can talk later." He shoved the forgotten form in the boy's face.

Shippo sighed. "I'll be back before you know it, Kagome. We'll talk then, okay?"

She nodded and watched him leave with the trunk before returning her gaze to the stoic lord. "The delivery couldn't wait? He hasn't seen me in so long. Why couldn't we talk?"

His liquid eyes smoldered at her. It made her knees weak. "It is still _my_ turn."

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><p>AN: *shivers* Ooh. The Sesshoumaru in my imagination is damn hot! That last line made _my_ knees weak. And I was sitting down when I wrote it! lol. I sure hope you enjoyed and sorry it was so short but I had to stop it there.


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